Page 71 of Silver Spoon Falls, Vol. I

FORTY-NINE

CIARA

Two more hours. Actually, one hundred and twenty-three minutes until I get to drag my tired rear end home.

I’m keeping my fingers crossed that Todd finished cleaning the kitchen before heading to bed so I can shower and fall right into my own bed.

Burning the candle at both ends is turning me into an old lady before my time, but I’ll do whatever it takes to keep my brother out of foster care.

He’s already lost our parents and the only life he’s ever known, and I don’t want him to lose me, too.

"Is it over yet?" My best friend, Carlie, walks up and lays her head against my shoulder. Boy, she hit that nail right on the head. “It feels like we’ve been here for two days, not four freaking hours.”

"God, I wish. It seems like the nights just keep getting longer and longer. Six-hour shifts seem to last an eternity," I mutter under my breath and glance around to make sure Leone doesn’t catch us “gossiping like church ladies again.”

“I don’t pay you broads to shoot the shit.

Get your asses moving and make my customers happy.

” Carlie’s Brooklyn accent is dead-on. I snort as I picture Leone giving us his favorite little speech.

Only, in my mind, I replace my manager’s oily, slicked-back hair with Carlie’s blonde curls and come up with quite the vision.

I met Carlie three years ago when I came to The Last Resort Bar looking for a job.

At a few months short of twenty-one, I couldn't exactly get a job making the kind of money I need to support both myself and my teenage brother at a reputable bar.

As a last resort, pun intended, I wandered into this dive on the outskirts of Silver Spoon Falls.

Leone, the oldest of the three Bellotti brothers who own the questionable establishment, hired me on the spot without checking my ID. Lucky me. One bright spot was meeting Carlie, another new hire. We bonded over our cruddy luck in life and our similar situations.

"I keep telling myself the end is coming, but the next two months seem like an eternity from now," Carlie mumbles, as Bob, one of our regulars, slams his glass down on the top of his table, signaling that he'd like a refill.

Jerk. “It might make me a terrible person, but I wish just once the glass would break when the jerk does that.”

“The creep deserves it.” I would rather eat dirt than deal with the drunk jerk, but he’s sitting at one of my tables.

Tonight, I’m waiting tables, but tomorrow, I’ll probably be bartending if Rocco decides he’s worked enough this week.

This job requires me to be flexible because the three sleazy brothers who run it have no problem working the system to benefit them.

“Let me get His Highness’s drink refilled before his saturated liver has a chance to dry out." Carlie looks over her shoulder and winks. “You go see what the table of hot college hunks by the door wants.”

“You’re the bestest ever.” I sigh in relief.

“We got each other,” Carlie mutters and walks away.

The hot college hunks are already three sheets to the wind so getting their order is easy.

I step up to the bar to give Rocco, the youngest Bellotti brother and head bartender, my order for the college boys and kick off one of my heels to let the blood return to my foot.

Out of the corner of my eye, I watch Carlie easily handle Bob and realize my time working with my bestie is limited.

She’s going to graduate from nursing school in two months and leave all this behind.

I just hope she doesn’t forget about me.

A blast of hot air hits me, and I glance over to see who’s walking in the door.

Holy shiitake. My heart squeezes in my chest while my girly bits wake up as I watch Coach Garrett Marsh storm in the door.

His laser-sharp ice-blue eyes move around the room until they fall on me.

As he changes direction and heads straight for me, I feel like a deer caught in the headlights.

Only my hunter is tall, dark, and so freaking hot, I want to melt on the spot.

“Ciara.” His dark, smoky voice causes goosebumps to erupt all over my body. “I need to talk to you.”

I blink several times. It’s the first time he’s ever singled me out. I mean, he’s always nice to me, but I’ve got the impression that he attempts to avoid dealing with me as much as possible. “Is Todd okay?” It’s the only reason I can think of for him coming here to talk to me.

“Can you step outside and talk to me?”

My heart drops when he doesn’t outright answer my simple question.

“I’m working.” I swallow, but fear for my brother causes me to ask, “Please tell me Todd is okay.”

“He’s fine, but there is a situation.”

My heart settles into place. I can deal with anything except losing my last family member.

Out of nowhere, Leone steps between us and growls, “Get back to work. I don’t pay you to have personal conversations.”

“Back off,” Garrett roars at my boss, and I can picture my job flying right out the window. “I need to speak to Ms. Sharp about her brother.”

“Ciara can discuss her brother until the cows come home after she gets off.” Leone’s fake Brooklyn accent is truly awful.

My head moves back and forth between the two men like a tennis match as all the words fighting their way up my throat stick. “She’s going to step outside with me right now, and you can take this job and shove it up your mobster wannabe ass.” Garrett’s eyes narrow while his fists clench at his side.

“Woah there, buddy.” I turn to Garrett as the thought of losing my job and my only means of supporting myself and Todd loosens my lips.

“No one will be shoving anything. I need this job.” Then I turn to my boss and swallow my pride.

“Mr. Bellotti.” It really irks me to show this jerk respect, but I’ll do whatever it takes to keep my job.

“There’s an emergency with my brother. Can I please step outside with Coach Marsh for a few minutes?

” I can see the creep opening his mouth to refuse, so I add a little incentive.

“I’ll give thirty-five percent of my tips to the house tonight instead of my usual twenty-five percent. ”

“Five minutes.” Dollar signs shine from my greedy boss’ slimy muddy brown eyes. “If you’re longer than that, don’t bother coming back in.”

“You give this goddamn bar twenty-five percent of your tips?” Garrett Marsh wraps his warm hand around my elbow and practically drags me out the door. Well, drag is a harsh word. He actually gently leads me to the door while the heat from his hand sears my soul. “That’s highway robbery.”

“I can’t lose this job.” I spin around and poke his muscular chest. “It’s the one place in town that I can make enough to support both myself and Todd working thirty hours a week.”

“Why don’t you apply for a job at the Park Avenue Bar?” He rubs the back of his neck as questions swirl in his icy blue eyes.

“Look.” I need to nip this in the bud. I don’t know who I can trust in this town, and I can’t have someone report me to social services.

Losing my brother isn’t an option. “I appreciate you trying to help, but my employment is my business. Now, what is going on with Todd?” My heart rebels at the thought of keeping Garrett Marsh at arms’ length, but I can’t take the risk.

“Your brother got into trouble trying to impress his asshole friends.” Oh no.

I can’t afford to buy my brother out of trouble like most of the families in Silver Spoon Falls.

“It’s going to take more than five minutes to fix this.

” Keeping my job moves to the backburner as I listen to Coach Marsh explain, “Todd and two of the other football players lost their ever-loving minds and decided to take your car on a joyride. Todd wrecked it.”

“What?” I growl as worry for my brother morphs into anger and disappointment. “Please tell me everyone is okay.” Oh, God. If my brother hurt someone, he’ll have to live with it for the rest of his life.

“They’re all fine. It was all property damage.” Garrett rubs his warm hand up and down my arm soothingly.

“How bad off is Thelma?” My little Sentra might not be much, but she was a sweet sixteen present from my parents.

“Thelma?” Coach Marsh blinks several times and rubs the back of his neck. “Who in the hell is Thelma?”

“My car.” I cross my arms over my chest, ready to defend myself if he makes fun of me for naming my car.

“Oh, Cherry, you’re about the most adorable thing I’ve ever met.”

I don’t know what to do with that statement, so I ignore it and turn back to the important matter at hand.

“I didn’t drive to work tonight because the brakes were making funny noises.

” My breathing accelerates as all the implications of this situation crash through my thoughts.

My insurance is going to drop me, and my brother will end up in foster care. “And Todd doesn’t have a license.”

I’m unable to stop the tears as they fall down my cheeks.

“Stop crying, Cherry,” he mutters and runs his fingers over my cheeks, catching the wetness.

“I have everything under control.” Letting Coach Marsh handle my problems sounds like heaven.

I haven’t had someone to lean on for so long that I’ve forgotten how it feels to have support, but I have to stand on my own two feet.

“I can’t let you fix this.” I take a deep breath and swallow the stupid tears. “It was my brother who screwed up, so he and I will find a way out of this.”

“Come with me.” He takes my hand in his, and I almost melt on the spot. “We can discuss this situation and how we’re going to fix it at my house. I already have it all worked out.”

I want to believe him, but I can’t figure out why he’s going to all this trouble for me and Todd.

It sounds like heaven to let someone else take the reins for a little bit, yet I don’t have that luxury.

I shake my head. “I can’t lose my job.” I have no doubt dealing with my brother’s screw-up isn’t going to be cheap.

All my options run through my mind and none of them are great.

I finally decide to go with the least painful.

Taking a deep breath, I pull myself together and swallow my pride.

“I only have four more hours left of work. Can you possibly keep Todd with you until I get off at midnight?” It’s asking a lot, but I don’t have a choice.

“My friend, Carlie, will drop me off at your house and we can talk then, okay?” Holy shiitake, I’m asking the coach to go above and beyond, but I don’t really have a choice.

“Are you going to be able to work with all this on your mind?” He continues rubbing my arm, which is turning my mind to mush. My life might be falling apart all around me, but some little part of me has faith that Garrett Marsh will help me figure it all out.

“As long as I know Todd is with you.”